‘How does the employment work?’ Ex-1 asked the more talkative soldier. ‘The boy mentioned that you use a bounty system. So - I bring evidence of my kills, and the city will reward my efforts?’

The man nodded towards his two companions, who continued their patrol without him, before shifting his attention back to Ex-1.

‘Yes, follow me to the office. I will fill in the paperwork to give you access to the sewers and explain the rules to you. It is a little more complicated than the average citizen believes. Maybe your street rat got it right, but I doubt it.’

The man led the way to a cart not dissimilar to the merchants’ stalls in the marketplace. Next to it, there was a ramp leading downwards under the street. Ex-1 assumed that this would be the entrance to the sewers. It looked dank and was covered in filth. The stench emanating from the entrance got worse, the closer they got.

‘In the entrance areas, we only give out rewards for exterminating certain types of beasts. Some of the creatures, such as the slimes, we actually breed because they help remove the filth. Killing those will cause you no end of trouble with the city. There is a careful balance that must be kept at all times, to prevent the system from collapsing. So, each time you go in, you speak to one of the men and ask what needs removing.

‘Of course, if you ever go lower, into the second layer, you can kill whatever you come across, and get rewarded for it. Anything found there tends to be ether-warped, the creatures are too strong and present a real risk to the city if they come topside. Besides, the carcasses hold riches.’

All of this was in line with his expectations, so Ex-1 nodded his encouragement.

‘Anything from the first layer, those on patrol can deal with, so the work is not as lucrative,’ the man continued. ‘At the moment, we primarily need to reduce the number of murcks. They’re flying beasts, that either suck your blood or lay their eggs under your skin,’ the man shuddered. ‘They are easy to identify, even if you don’t have the skill for it. You got lucky, most times you don’t get rewarded for bringing them down at all. You end up fighting them because they are vicious, but it amounts to little or no gains. Course, you get the Ether increases, from killing them, and grow stronger as a result. But they are not worth the trouble they present.’

I wonder whether ‘identify’ is similar to my ‘inspect’ skill? In fact, he reasoned, this would be as good a time as any to try and learn the skill.

The man was busy talking, and Ex-1 was more than capable of splitting his attention between listening and reading his interface. There was little danger in the street, now that he was stationary, and surrounded by competent fighters who seemed disinterested in him. On the whole, he felt less eyes on his back right now than usual in this city.

Mind made up, he brought up his interface and focused on the skill he wanted further information on.

Inspect 1

Use a miniscule amount of Ether to inspect objects or beings. As you increase your understanding of Ether and this skill, you will be able to glean more information. Beware, the use of this skill can easily be detected or blocked at this level.

Once again, it required his intent to learn the skill properly, before a rush of information filled his head and subconscious mind.

He still couldn’t understand how the Ether was used and why it gave him information; but he did know how to activate the skill with a thought. It suddenly felt like second nature, not that dissimilar to instinctively moving a muscle when he wanted to move.

There we go, the AI messing with my memories again. It's practical, can't say I like it though. At least this interface one doesn't seem to be sentient, unlike the core... I hope.

This time the experience was less intense than when he’d learnt the teleportation skill. He briefly wondered whether it was due to the nature of the skill; teleportation seeming vastly more complicated.

His initial plan had been to test the skill on the talking guard, whilst he was distracted with his explanations. But the warning from the notification gave him pause.

Oh well, the skill said objects or beings.

Instead of inspecting the man, he chose to identify the cart in lieu.

This is a cart, lovingly termed ‘The Office’ by local soldiers and adventurers.

Bizzare, not sure how helpful this will be.

‘The murcks’ bodies don’t hold much value. Bring the stingers as proof of your kills. Leave the rest down there, for the ramidon to feed on. The rats and spiders both have valuable parts, but if you want someone to teach you to harvest them, you better go to the tavern over there and hire a guide,’ the man motioned to a building off to the side. People, predominantly adventurers and soldiers, had been coming and going from the place. Music and raucous laughter drifted out from within.

Ex-1 let the information wash over him as the guard continued his monologue. Now that he could use his inspect skill, he would be able to identify the creatures when he fought them. There was no need to draw further attention towards his ignorance.

‘Once you have money, that is, if you survive the first delve. I wouldn’t suggest trying to hire one now, they’ll turn you away. Right, I filled in most of this form. I need your name, and then you sign it with your Ether. That’ll give you the indicium to come and go from here as you please. You will still need to work your way up and prove your worth, if you desire access to other areas.’

The guard finally paused for a breath, allowing Ex-1 a glance at the document. It held basic information about him, such as gender and estimated age range. It certainly wasn’t enough to identify him by.

Picking up the quill and sliding the paper towards himself, Ex-1 wrote his designation in nice neat letters. He hesitated briefly, before putting down the instrument, admiring how natural the art of writing had felt.

He may distrust the AIs that had taken residence in his head, but they were useful.

Other than the brief description of himself, the document held a couple of lines, stating that Ex-1 was agreeing to hunt monsters on behalf of the city at his own discretion. It came with no further stipulations, but would somehow mark him with Ether, providing him with certain, undisclosed, privileges within the citystate.

His perusal of the document showed no hidden meanings or ways of exploitation. It really did appear to be rather blunt and straightforward.

A quick prompt by the guard, and a rather awkward conversation later, and Ex-1 had learned how to impart his Ether onto a document with a thought. A sudden itch, on his right arm, on the inside of his wrist, made him glance down.

Seeing the look, the guard spoke up, ‘It’s just the mark forming. It’s all about intent. Like with the document. Think about it appearing, and it will. It’ll serve to identify you as an adventurer in service of this city.’

The gate shut with a resounding clang, leaving Ex-1 in the dark and dingy hallway of the sewer. Even years of experience wasn't enough to completely mask his reaction to the fetor. He breathed through his mouth in an attempt to lessen the impact on his senses and almost immediately retched. Swallowing down the bile rising in his throat he took a step further into the sewers.

The exit was behind him, manned by a couple of surly guards from the outside. It barred the way back up into the city, preventing any stray monsters from getting out.

There will be no quick escape, should I be overwhelmed by creatures. But I have the time to be cautious.

A lazy river of murky sludge wound its way along the gully at his feet, quickly getting lost in the perpetual darkness. Sporadic torches illuminated little pockets of space. Gentle flames flickered, casting eerie shadows across the walls.

Irregular dripping and constant gurgling were accompanied by the incessant droning of rapidly beating insects’ wings. Animalistic shrieks resonated from within the shadows as creature attacked creature.

Straining his ears, he was able to make out the faint echoes of a human battle being fought in some corner, invisible to his eyes. A group of adventurers, if the distant shouts were anything to go by.

He’d been informed that the main walkways would all have raised paths alongside the trench, the darker the area, the more numerous and dangerous the monsters. Shifting his feet, he tested the ground; hard stone, slick with dirt and mud. Treacherous footing, if his attention slipped.

He had no intentions of following the walkway into the maze that was the sewers. For today, he would stay within sight of the gate. The thick metal bars let in some natural light, though it was dimmed by the transit down the ramp. As the only bright area in the entirety of the passage, it would be easily seen from quite some distance.

There was no need to carry a source of light until he was strong enough to explore the rest of the sewage system. For now, he would stay close to a torch and keep his hands free for the fighting.

Assessing the situation took but a few seconds. Confident strides transported him into the shadows.

He had barely taken a step, when an increased buzzing reached his ears. Almost instinctively, he turned towards the threat and used inspect on it.

Murck - Aggressive flying insect, predominantly found in dark and putrid places.

That tells me absolutely nothing. At least it’s the monster I’ve come to hunt.

The shape hurtling towards him was obscured by shadow - the torches’ feeble flickering not enough to pierce the darkness surrounding the beast’s body.

Glowing red eyes came in and out of focus, sporadically covered by the inky cloud that followed the creature’s flight. The haze of gloom was roughly twice the size of Ex-1’s head. Briefly, he was able to make out the sight of a sharp pointed stinger, glinting in the flames’ light, placed roughly between the eyes, though a little lower on its head.

Even as it rapidly approached, Ex-1 could not make out any distinguishing features of the murck.

His situation was not favourable - unsteady footing, questionable lighting, zero protection and no weapons. Yet he was confident in his abilities to persevere, to learn how to beat this foe effectively before being beaten himself.

‘So,’ he mused, ‘how do you fight a flying, obscured opponent?’

Bringing both arms up in a protective stance, he shifted his body. The wound from earlier had nearly healed, all that remained was a ragged scar that itched and burned as he tensed his muscles in readiness for battle. Even that would fade by the morrow.

The beast was close now, nearly upon him.

It dove towards his injured arm, as though it sensed the crust of blood on his skin and was aiming directly for it. The thick haze shrouding the creature’s body made it near impossible to accurately gauge its physiology.

With a swift punch, Ex-1 lunged for the monster, putting his weight behind the strike. Though it was as much luck as skill when he managed to swat the murck from its trajectory with the back of his hand.

The hit did not gain him much time, the beast righting its flight almost immediately. Strong wings let it stop and hover midair, effortlessly changing direction with an angry buzz, before barreling straight for Ex-1.

His fists shot out with blinding speed, but the beast was agile. This time Ex-1 felt the change in the air, as the murck came for him, followed by a brief flash of pain as the insect avoided his strike and counterattacked with its wickedly sharp appendage.

A new welt of blood quickly formed upon the area of impact, the stinger having penetrated and torn through his skin before he managed to fling it away. Ex-1 pushed the distraction to the back of his mind, minor injuries were not a concern of his.

Within seconds it was attacking again. The increased drone of rapidly beading wings, alongside the occasional glimpse of red eyes, was the only cue he got, then the murck was back on him.

The game of back and forth continued with carefully calculated maneuvers, falling into a practiced rhythm of evasion and aggression.

Ex-1 scanned the immediate area for something to use as a weapon. Taking down the creature with his bare hands proved challenging. Sweat already stained his back from the physical exertion and multiple lacerations adorned his hands and arms.

I am lucky it does not appear to be poisonous. It is time for a calculated risk.

Changing his plan, he slowly backed towards the wall, baiting the creature along. When he got within touching distance he exposed his shoulder to the creature, which immediately took advantage of the opening.

Excruciating pain, just beneath his shoulder plate, informed him of his plan’s success. From there it was a simple move to slam his body into the wall, trapping the creature in between. A sickening popping sensation, followed by entrails running down his side, and the flying insect was dead.

Strong fingers firmly pried at the newest wound, swiftly extracting the stinger still embedded within his flesh. Half of the creature’s splattered carcass remained attached to Ex-1’s new choice of weapon. He was satisfied that the stinger, the length of his handspan, would do its job of piercing future murcks’ bodies just fine.

Although being stung was more painful than he had anticipated, the flying insects would not present a serious danger to him - as long as he controlled the environment and fought them one at a time. They were a nuisance though. The guard had gotten that right.

Resetting his stance, he got ready to intercept the next murck that came his way. This will be fun!